To Love One's Family
by forgetmenow
Summary: Gaara reflects and regrets being distant from his siblings, especially Temari. Gaara x Temari, Platonic


**Disclaimer**: I don't own Naruto, and honestly I would probably never have the creative capacity to think of something even close. Kudos to Masashi Kishimoto!

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**To Love One's Family**  
(Draft: 9-19-06)

Short ficlet about Gaara x Temari, strictly platonic

I suppose you could kinda read it with a sandcest theme in mind, but that's not really my intention for this piece. ;

**By: Forgetmenow**  
Spoilers: Post Akatsuki/Gaara manga arc, barely anything really…just implying Gaara has no more insomnia.

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The air was filled with the chattering of the wedding guests. Every now and then the babbling would stop as the guests tapped their utensils against the glassware, encouraging the wedding couple to kiss.

Gaara was at a wedding.

Not his.

He stood apart, arms crossed over one another, just on the outskirts of the celebration, not quite part of the festivities, but still not a complete outsider. He had resigned himself long ago that this day for him would never come for him. No one understood him enough. Who would want to spend the rest of their life trying to? He only knew one person that would've tried and this was her wedding day. And she was marrying another man. He realized that he had let her slip away. Even before he gave her away and to let her stand beside her soon-to-be husband to read her vows. He knew he could never be with her again. Not like in the past.

Siblings grew up and moved away from each other.

It was just a fact of life, adulthood would pull them apart. Life with their new partners and families drew them away from the road of sibling companionship. They would still keep in touch and share little anecdotes, but that closeness and familiarity of living together under one roof and sharing meals together became an evermore fleeting fantasy as the day progressed.

She was blushing and laughing, flattered and chagrined as she made her way through the throng of guests, arm in arm with her now husband. He wondered if he had ever felt the emotion of regret before this day. Or was it somehow compounded to immeasurable degrees that it was all he could seem to recall.

She was so happy, but not because of him. Very few times had he given her reason to laugh or even smile. She had feared him during most of their time together. And when he had reformed, it was too late, a growing affection for the other suitor had bloomed.

Like an unopened bud, he had seen her mature and blossom into the vision she was now. And with every day, he'd seen her drift farther and farther away from the close-knit sibling trio of their youth. Just when they had only recently begun acting like a true family. That time was too short. He regretted not cherishing it while he had the chance.

Then, Gaara woke up.

"Wake up, Sleeping Beauty." Temari stood tilted against the doorway, an apron encircling her slim waist with a mixing bowl and spoon in her hands.

He rubbed the remnants of sleep from his eyes and sat up in the bed.

"I've made breakfast. Pancakes." Temari grinned, feeling very proud of herself.

Kankurou's voice hollered from the kitchen down the hall. "They taste like dog biscuits and just as hard! Aren't these things supposed to be fluffy? I think I chipped a tooth. You'd wish you'd never… "

A vein bulged in Temari's forehead and she gripped the wooden spoon in hand till her knuckles became white with rage. She stomped out of the bedroom.

"You ungrateful jerk! Do you know how long it took me to mix the batter to the right consistency and play Suzy homemaker?! How about next time you make breakfast for us!" Temari hollered.

Gaara heard the banging of pots and pans followed by an apologetic Kankurou. "Gomen! Gomen! I love it… really! I was only joking. See? Yummie!...OW! No need for violence…"

Getting out of bed, he followed after the voices, drawn by the camaraderie of his two older siblings.

They were his family, a true family now. Together. For how long, he knew not. However, he would cherish every moment he could.


End file.
